FACT-CHECK: Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto did not suffer a heart attack

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CLAIM: Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III had a heart attack.
 
RATING: FALSE

 

A video uploaded by a YouTube page “SAGAM TV” falsely claimed that Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto had suffered a heart attack, without citing official sources.

Flagged content: The photo, uploaded on Nov. 19, had a  caption that read: “SOTTO INATAKE SA PUSO NG MALAMAN NI KÜTÏNG NA KABET NIYA SI LIZATANAZ FINISH NA (sic)!!” (“Sotto had a heart attack when Kuting found out his mistress was Lizatanaz. It’s over!”)

Our debunk: On Nov. 30, Senator Sotto released a statement in response to a fire that broke out at the Senate headquarters in Pasay City. He also appeared in videos inspecting the session hall.

  • On Nov. 28, Sotto called for funding the Road Safety Action Plan 2023–2028, which aims to expand riders’ education to help prevent road accidents.
  • On Nov. 27, he attended a Senate session where proposed 2026 budgets for several departments, including the Office of the Vice President and the Department of National Defense, were deliberated.
  • On Nov. 26, during deliberations on the 2026 General Appropriations Bill, Sotto questioned the Commission on Higher Education about scholarships that should have been awarded to medical students, especially those in rural areas.

Rewind: In November, ex-TV host Anjo Yllana made several accusations against Sotto, his former noontime show co-host, during a TikTok livestream. Yllana threatened to reveal the identity of a woman he claimed had been Sotto’s mistress since 2013.

  • The accusations were made on Yllana’s personal TikTok account, which is part of his “Anjo & Mr. Wrongbang” vlog series.
  • He claimed there was a “syndicate” inside the long-running noontime show “Eat Bulaga,” alleging internal wrongdoing and the mistreatment of former staff. Yllana also challenged Sotto to fulfill his campaign promise to donate his Senate salary to scholars.

Gossip as fodder: On Nov. 7, PressOne.PH published a special report about showbiz gossip influencing public perception of the Senate flood control probe. 

  • The report argued that celebrity and relationship rumors were being used to distract from and distort the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee’s investigation into alleged corruption in flood control projects.
  • These gossip-driven narratives are spreading widely on social media, especially through suspicious YouTube channels and TikTok accounts.

Why we’re fact-checking this: As of writing, the YouTube video has drawn 6,466 views, 288 likes, and 50 comments.

Spot the fake: Do not be deceived by posts from unverified accounts—always check verified sources before believing claims made on social media.   Jamaica Cabilis

 


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